The Southern Ontario/WNY Radio-TV Forum / Do The People At Tim's Know How To Correctly Pronounce This?

**Posted by RadioActive** June 20, 2025 9:37 am

There's a spot running for Tim Horton's that's driving me crazy. (And as I often say, it's not a long drive!)

The woman talks about a deal that involves a "bagel." Except she pronounces it bag-el, instead of bayg-el. It never fails to get my attention, so I suppose in that way it's effective. But it sets my teeth on edge. How did that get by all the people who have to approve an ad?

Maybe Terry O'Reilly can do a show next season about mistakes that leak into radio spots and despite all the vetting, somehow get on air anyway.

**Posted by Stacks of wax** June 20, 2025 12:51 pm

RadioActive wrote:
... and despite all the vetting, somehow get on air anyway.

I'd say that's just about all of them.

**Posted by Binson Echorec** June 20, 2025 12:56 pm

While I pronounce it as "bayg-ull", the pronunciation of "bagg-ull" has become a tuh-may-toe, tuh-mah-toe situation for me.

Last edited by Binson Echorec (June 20, 2025 12:56 pm)

**Posted by Capricasix** **Online!** June 20, 2025 1:48 pm

Regional variations in pronunciation happen frequently, and this is not a new variation - when I was growing up in Dufferin County a few decades ago, it was a common pronunciation for that word.

**Posted by RadioActive** June 20, 2025 1:54 pm

I grew up in a predominantly Jewish neighbourhood. If you said "Bah-gull," you'd be laughed out of Gryfe's on an early Sunday morning!

**Posted by newsguy1** June 20, 2025 5:55 pm

There have actually been news stories about this.
Apparently BAH gul is the way some people pronounce it in certain regions in the upper New York State.
That bled into Canada.
But yeah, I was raised on BAY gul.
Oh, well, happy yom KIPPER to all.
See you at the next Buh NYE brith meeting.

**Posted by mace** June 20, 2025 6:37 pm

I have a British co-worker who loves his to-mah-to sandwiches and insists on referring those black and white striped animals as zeh-bras.

**Posted by betaylored** June 20, 2025 6:46 pm

Having grown up in Montreal with the delicious Montreal/New York style bagel and their completely different flavour and texture it's a mystery why anyone would call the round lump of either barely or overbaked dough on offer at Tim Hortons a bagel, however you're pronouncing the word.

Real bagels are bay-guls of course.
Tim Hortons? Meh-guls.

sidebar: the mispronunciation of words is another reason to avoid using AI as the "talent" for voice work because it's a dead giveaway, not that the Tim Hortons spot is AI

Last edited by betaylored (June 20, 2025 7:32 pm)

**Posted by mace** June 20, 2025 7:24 pm

What we have here are many cases where people put the em-PHA-sis on the wrong syll-A-ble.

**Posted by DeepTracks** June 21, 2025 8:01 am

Long vowel sound before a single consonant and a short vowel sound before a double consonant is the way I was taught , so "bagel" is BAY-gull it is

An alternative - maybe it should be bay-JELL .

**Posted by g121** June 21, 2025 11:51 am

Some folks seems to be grasping really hard to make this a 'con-trov-ah-see' : )) ..

**Posted by RonaldS** June 22, 2025 3:22 am

Then there's this

https://youtu.be/28xull2w78E?si=7hll8mFLNvCMp9A

**Posted by RadioActive** June 22, 2025 7:47 am

And this:

**Posted by Easily Amused** **Online!** June 22, 2025 8:12 am

Having dealings with both sides of the Canada / U.S. border, people need to realize there are various mangling of pronunciations, to the point where fisticuffs may ensue. In some cases, medical attention may be required. In Canada, one would attend HOspital, whereas in the U.S., one attends 'the HAHspittle'. 😁